The Good Kid
by flyingfishbird
Summary: The NCIS agents investigate the murder of a marine lieutenant. Little does Gibbs know is that the lieutanants foster daughter could end up changing his life, along with the rest of the gang.
1. Chapter 1

"**Tony! You do that one more time I will take that straw and shove it up your-""But Ziva." Interrupted a cocky Dinozo. "Why? When it's oh so fun." He adds as he raised a straw to his lips and blew, sending a moist wadded up paper ball flying towards Zepha. The ball hit her in the middle of the forehead with a small 'thwap'. Instinctively Ziva flinched and flailed her arms in front of her face. Tony was almost in tears with laughter until something hit him in the corner of his mouth, sticking. The laughing stopped immediately and Tony jerked his head in the direction of the spitball which just happened to be in the direction of Magee's desk. He turned his head just in time to see Magee putting away a straw. Tony glared and muttered "You think that's funny Probie?" Tony asked in an angry tone, reaching up to get the paper off his face. "Actually Tony, I think it's quite funny." Magee responded, a smirk on his face as he watched Tony trying, but not succeeding in getting the paper off his face. Tony looked over at Magee's desk and saw a Superglue bottle resting on top. "Probie!" Tony shouted. Ziva walked over to Magee's desk and they both exchanged high fives. "Thank you Magee" said Ziva gratefully. They both watched Tony desperately scratching a t the paper to get it off. At that moment Gibbs walked in giving them the report. "We got a dead marine lieutenant down Franklin Rd. just west of here. Grab your gear." Gibbs says but then suddenly stops next to Tony's desk with a confused look on his face. "Dinozo… you got a little sumthin' right here." He informs, putting a finger on the corner of his own face to indicate where the ball of ****paper was. "Thanks boss…" mumbled Tony, irritated. He wanted to kill Magee, and Magee knew it and was already heading to the elevator. **

**About three hours later, after gathering all the evidence they could, which wasn't much. The killer really cleaned up. They were at the house of the dead lieutenant, Robin Davis used to live. The only one that was there at the time was a man named Richard Davis, Robin's husband. Both Robin and Richard had a daughter, well, foster daughter. "I'm sorry about your wife Mr. Davis." Said Ziva sincerely. The man didn't seem bothered. He did seem like a tough man and that gave Gibbs a funny feeling but he quickly shrugged it off. "Did you see anything strange? Maybe got a strange phone call from someone that might have killed your wife?" Asked Gibbs curiously. The man just looked up at him and nodded. "Well…there was this one man.. he was on Robin's team. I never liked the guy.. he seemed kind of strange." He says quietly. "Do you know his name?" Gibbs asked calmly. "Conell.. Gus Conell." He responds. Just then the front door burst open, revealing a red faced girl that looked about fourteen. She had obviously been running, due to the red face and the hard breathing. Gibbs knew immediately something was wrong with this girl from the look in her eyes. It was a look of pain, remorse.. fear. He recognized that look all too well. It was the look he saw whenever he looked in the mirror. The girl looked to her right, the living room where everyone was sitting. Her heart sank when she saw the agents sitting on the couch. She looked at her foster father and he just nodded. Her eyes were cloudy with tears as she set down her book bag and walked out the door again, slamming it behind her. Gibbs immediately shot up. "Do you ****mind if we ask your daughter a few questions?" Gibbs asked quickly. The man just nodded and Gibbs walked towards the door quickly. "Ziva, stay here and question him." He commanded as he walked out the door, seeing the girl walking down the street. He ran after her, coming up next to her. "Hey... can you tell me your name?" He asked, pleasantly. She just kept walking. "Austin.." She says simply, the tears were gone from her face. She looked so uncaring. It was strange. "Well Austin, can you tell me anything about your mom?" He asked, only to receive a quick, irritated response. "Foster mom… she wasn't my mother." Gibbs sighed heavily, already knowing this girl was going to be stubborn. "Well…can you tell me anything about your foster mother?" He asked evenly. "I can tell you that she got back a week ago… I don't know anything else…" She muttered. Gibbs looked around, not sure where they were. "Where are you going?" He asks curiously. "It's none of your business." She says simply. "Well.. I'm just conce-""Don't tell me you're concerned! Don't ever pretend you care! I don't know you and you don't know me!" She snapped. He had obviously struck a nerve. Gibbs looked somewhat surprised. He wasn't used to people talking to him like that. "But… I do care." Gibbs said softly. Austin just shook her head and made a left turn into a thick patch of woods. Gibbs stopped even though he was worried. **

**He decided to follow her a little while after so she wouldn't see him immediately. Gibbs sat down on the curb of the road, watching the cars fly by for about seven minutes. Then he stood up and walked into the woods. The woods was almost treacherous with the amount of roots and sudden drops. He thought it was amazing that this girl could maneuver so well in this. That led him to believe that she did this a lot. This was where she went to get away. Just up ahead he heard the sound of running water, a stream. Sure enough, he saw the shimmer of water just up ahead. What he also saw surprised him. It was a little tent type thing. It was really only a skeleton of a wall and ceiling made of wood, with a tarp over it, covering up the unfinished holes. He knew that this was more than just some place that she liked to go to. It was more like a home. He saw her leaning against a tree and what was in her hand made him want to leap out of behind the tree and stop her. She had a small pistol in her hand and was turning it over and over, examining it. Gibbs started to make his way over to her. "Hey.." He says simply. She quickly hid the gun in a large chunk of grass. She looked up at him, her eyes red. She had obviously been crying, and she looked a lot calmer now. "How come you followed me?" she asks, the innocence in her voice was rare for a girl her age these days. This girl just kept on surprising him. Gibbs answered softly, almost fatherly. "You don't know me and I don't know you.. So don't judge me so fast. I care. Honest to God I do. Don't ever say I don't." Gibbs responded, setting a light hand on her shoulder. She seemed to sky away from his hand at first, as if she was afraid. Gibbs sighed lightly. "Listen.. I really am sorry about your mo- foster.. mom" Gibbs said calmly. "From what I heard she was a great woman." Austin just nodded. "She really was.." She says quietly, her eyes getting cloudy with tears. "Its gonna be alright. We will find the person who did this." He says thoughtfully. Austin wiped a tear from her eye. "I know that.. I heard a lot about NCIS. I heard that they were better than real police." She says simply. "Oh really?" inquired Gibbs. "Who did you hear that from. "My foster brother.. He used to be one of the best pilots ever." She says with a proud smile on her face. Gibbs smiled, happy to see a bright look for the first time on Austin's face. "I'm sure he was." Austin nodded. "Yeah.. But he died a while back. They say it was just a simple mistake and his plane went down. But he never made mistakes.. Well.. Not a mistake that had to do with flying." She says quietly. "So you think he was murdered?" asked Gibbs "Yeah.. I guess you could say that." She sighs. Gibbs put an arm around her. "Its going to be alright." Gibbs said with that reassuring Gibb's smile. "I promise. You're a good kid."**


	2. Chapter 2

**The next day Tony and McGee were going at it like two women in a clothes store with only one cute pair of pants left. **

"**Tony! You said you would forget about the whole spitball thing!" McGee exclaimed obviously flustered. Tony, who now wore a band-aid on the corner of his mouth just laughed sarcastically at the angry Probie, who was not trying to get his hand out of the vending machine. **

"**I did say that didn't I.." He says with a slight shrug. **

"**Oh well. Well, we can let bygones be bygones and just let it go." Tony said, suppressing a burst of hilarity. **

"**Tony! Get my hand out!" McGee shouted, his hand starting to ache due to the pressure of the little door. **

"**Say please." Tony said with a smirk. McGee sighed heavily and swallowed his pride. **

"**Please.." **

"**Now that wasn't too hard now was it Probie?" Tony said getting behind McGee and started to help him.**

**At that moment the sound of an elevator door opening was heard. Austin stepped out of it and shouted **

"**Gi-" but she was quickly cut off as she looked to her left, seeing two men at a vending machine. One was bent over and the other was leaning on the man. Her jaw dropped and she quickly started to walk. Tony glanced behind him and saw the look of shock on a young girls face. He quickly understood what the look of shock was about and hurled himself away from McGee. McGee quickly looked behind him, wondering where Tony went, and saw the girl. **

"**No! I just got my hand stuck and he was helping me!" He shouted desperately trying to get her to believe him. Austin just nodded. **

"**Uh-huh.." She said sarcastically as she looked ahead and saw Gibbs. **

"**Hey Austin." Gibbs called out. **

"**What are you doing here? Its Thursday. Do you have off school today?" He asks curiously, a bit confused. **

**Austin just nodded slowly. "Yeah.. We had a day off." Gibbs smiled. He knew she was lying, but he understood. **

"**What are you doing here?" He asks, trying to get to the point. **

"**I was just wondering.. Maybe I could help you with the case?" She asked quietly, almost cautiously. Gibbs half smiled, but Tony looked confused and irritated. Of course McGee was too busy at the moment to even care about the situation. **

**Gibbs scratched his head with a look of thought on his face. "I don't think that it's the right job for you." He says calmly.**

"**Hey, c'mon. I know that lady better than most people. I know who her friends are and I know her team." She argues, like any other teenager.**

**Gibbs sighed a little. "I don't know. Some of the things we find you may not want to hear."**

"**I'm not a five year old! Whatever you find I can take it." She says slightly frustrated now.**

**Gibbs shook his head. "Alright. Fine. But please. Don't get too involved." He says sternly.**

"**But boss!" Interrupted Tony with a hint of urgency. "You cant actually let her help wi-" Tony stopped, seeing the annoyed look in Gibb's eyes. "sorry boss.." He mumbled, walking back to his desk.**

"**How about I show you the evidence we already have collected from the crime scene?"**

"**Sounds great." She says following behind Gibbs down to the lab. Abby of course was playing her music and Gibbs walked over to the stereo and turned it off. The silence was deafening. Well, it was until the perky lovable Abby turned around, seeing Gibbs. She looked almost stunned. **

"**How do you do that?!" Gibbs asked curiously. "The whole 'hmm. Abby must have something, my Gibbs senses are tingling' thing!" Abby said enthusiastically. Gibbs just gave a little shrug.**

**Abby looked down at Austin with a bright smile. **

"**Hello. I'm Abby. What's your name?" She asks, her hands clasped together in front of her stomach. Austin smiled a little, already deciding that she liked this lady. **

"**I'm Austin." She answers in her soft voice. The first thing Abby noticed about this girl was that she had piercing blue eyes, and she was a red head. She couldn't help but laugh a little. **

"**Nice to meet you Austin." She says happily. **

"**What do you got Abbs?" Gibbs asked softly, unlike how he spoke to the rest of the crew. **

"**Well I got a partial finger print. From the way its positioned on the piece of cloth I think its from the right ring finger."**

"**Is it enough for an accurate match?"**

**Abby smiled "Now Gibbs. Have I ever let you down?" At that moment Abby started to look around the room confused. "Where did Austin go?"**

**Now Gibbs started to look around. "I'll find her, you just get me a match." Gibbs said as he started to go towards the elevator.**

**Meanwhile, Austin was back up with Tony and McGee. She stepped off the elevator and saw that McGee was still in need of assistance. She walked over in front of him and asked "Need help?"**

**McGee looked up at her and mumbled "Maybe a little."**

**Austin smiled and said "Just relax."**

**McGee nodded and did what she said. Austin put her hand next to McGee's. Since her hand was smaller it didn't get stuck. Then she slowly, without any pain at all, started to work her fingers along the dried glue line that was McGee's hand and the little door. Finally, McGee was free and stood up, smiling, looking down at the red line across the back of his hand. Austin then stood up and handed him the bag of chips that was in the hole.**

"**This what you were lookin' for?"**

"**Thanks a lot!" He said enthusiastically as he took the bag, happy to have his hand mobile again. "What are you doing here anyway? Oh! You must be the lieutenants daughter." McGee said with a smile.**

"**Yup. That's me." She responds with a smile. "I should get going.. I have things to do. See ya later.. Um.."**

"**Oh. Its McGee."**

"**Austin." She says holding out her hand.**

**After they shook hands Austin departed, walking down the street when she saw a tall, stringy boy probably a freshman backing away from a group of three buff guys that she thought were probably at least juniors. One wearing all black with dyed black hair and a nose ring, another had an earring, blonde short cropped hair and wearing blue jeans and a white oversized T-shirt. And the last had brown hair down to the shoulders wearing a black tank top and baggy blue jeans. Austin knew that this guy was in trouble, but she knew that if she helped, she would end up being the one in trouble, but she also knew that if she didn't help then she wouldn't be able to stop thinking about it until she was dead. She had no idea what to do as she watched the three guys inch closer to the terrified freshman.**


	3. Chapter 3

Austin made her decision, and although it may not have been the smartest one, she was too prideful to think it over. She sprinted towards the scene just as the presumable leader of the group (the blonde with the earring) had the freshman by the collar of the shirt, his fist pulled back, getting ready to knock the trembling boy off his feet. Austin quickly dropped to the ground once she was a few feet from him and kicked him just in the back of the knee, sending him falling to the ground, forcing him to let go of the boy. "What the hell?!" Shouted the leader. The other two boys were too stunned that someone actually was standing up to them. Let alone a _girl_.

"Go!" Shouted Austin to the freshman that was now dazed from what was going on. "Did you hear me?! I said go!" she shouted again, now pushing him forcefully, making him gain his senses. He stumbled back and then decided to get help because he knew that this girl, his savior might just be killed by these brutes and what could he do? He was just a scrawny kid. He took off running, a bit awkwardly at first, still in a slight daze, but quickly gained speed.

Gibbs was walking down the street, looking for Austin. He presumed that she had gone back to school, but he was just making sure. She had seemed a bit fidgety and nervous with their last encounter, and to say the least, he knew she was going to get into some sort of trouble. That thought was proven correct when he saw a boy running towards him, looking like he was about to wet himself. Gibbs saw that the boy wasn't slowing down and he grabbed him by the shoulders, stopping him immediately. At that moment the boy started to scream something not understandable.

"The- girl! Gang! Killed!" The boy shouted.

Gibbs shook him a bit. "Calm down! Where is the girl?" He asked sternly.

"The school yard! Hurry! They are going to kill her!" He shouted desperately.

Gibbs started to run towards the school, and what he saw horrified him. Everyone was gone. Austin, the gang, everyone. Gibbs started to look around frantically, cursing under his breath. He wondered if the boy had just been messing with him, but that thought quickly left his mind. That was pure fear in the boy's eyes. Gibbs ran into the school and walked over to the main office as calmly as he could and asked if Austin Davis was in the school. The woman at the desk had a slightly flustered look on her face as she asked "Are you her father?"

Now Gibbs was getting impatient as he pulled out his badge. "Special Agent Gibbs. NCIS." He informs, giving the woman the cold Gibbs stare. The woman nodded uneasily "Alright. Austin Davis…" She says as she typed in the name on the computer. "No. Sorry sir. Austin Davis is absent today." She says, giving a slight shake of the hed. He nodded his head in appreciation, but he was incredibly worried. He sighed heavily, trying to think of where she would be as his phone started to ring. Gibbs took out his phone, pushing those awful thoughts aside for the sake of the case, flipping the phone open and in a gruff stern voice he said "Agent Gibbs." On the other end of the line, the complete opposite of his own voice was a perky female that definitely had something to say, and she made a point of it.

"Gibbs! Where are you!?" exclaimed Abby, sounding a little confused and very frustrated.

"I'm at Austin's school, what do you got Abbs?"

"Austin's school? Really? How's she doing?" Abby asked curiously. It was obvious she liked the girl, even though they only talked for about five seconds at the most.

"I don't know Abbs. I'll let you know when I find out."

"Gibbs?" Abby asked, her voice filled with sudden fear. "Please tell me she's alright."

"Abby… she's fine… trust me."

"Alright. If you say so."

"Tell me what you got." Gibbs repeats, trying to get his mind away from the worry he felt.

Abby sighed, obviously trying to do the same thing. "Well Gibbs, I matched the partial finger print to some guy named Gus Conell. His address is 102 Gray Street. But… there's a problem." Said Abby, going into a deeper confused state in her voice.

"What is it Abby?" Gibbs asked softly.

"There is something missing. Like, a piece of evidence. Its like it disappeared. I don't know… maybe I'm just going insane. It just seemed like there was more evidence than there is now."

"Don't worry Abby. We'll get the guy."

"I sure hope so. I like Austin. She's already made friends with McGee and me. I cant wait till Ducky meets her. I feel really sorry for her." Abby says sincerely.

"Me too Abbs… me too." Gibbs says, flipping his phone shut. He shook his head a bit and walked out of the building. He called up his team and told them all to meet up at the address that was provided. Gibbs was there first, and the rest of the team pulled up, all in the same car. Not a good idea. They all stepped out of the car, Tony bantering McGee and Ziva yelling at Tony for being a cow. Of course Tony corrected her by saying the phrase "You are a pig, not a cow."

"Why would you call a cow a pig?" Was Ziva's response.

Gibbs sighed and shouted "Hey! Could we do our job now?"

That quieted everyone down really fast. In unison they all said "Yes boss." They made there was to the door. Gibbs got out his gun, along with everyone else. The door was unlocked so Gibbs slowly and quietly opened it, glancing around the room that it opened up to. He opened the door a bit wider and made his way inside. The rest of the team followed, each splitting up into different rooms. Throughout the house all you could here was the word "Clear" thrown around, until McGee opened the door to Conell's bedroom.

Lying on the floor in a pool of blood, was the body of Gus Conell. "Um. Guys? I think I got something." McGee said nervously as he lowered his gun, only to hear the sounds of shots fired and the sound of splintering wood in the doorway next to him and the breaking of glass of a window in front of him. He dropped to the ground, covering his head with his hands, waiting for the shots to end. The sound of screeching tires replaced the sound of the gunshots. That was the moment Gibbs ran in, gun raised. He ran to the window, watching an old beat up ford pick up truck drive out of the driveway and down the street. He couldn't get a plate number and he cursed under his breath. He turned his attention to his teammate.

"You alright McGee?" He asked walking over to him.

"Fine boss." McGee responded, getting to his feet. "Sorry boss, I should have been more attentive."

Gibbs didn't respond. "Call Ducky. Tell him to get over here."

After about fifteen minutes Ducky and Palmer pulled up. For the first time not arguing about who got who lost. But they definitely had that look on their face. Ducky looked around a bit concerned. "Where's Gibbs?" He asks curiously.

McGee looked very down. They had all been told about Austin, and it hit McGee the hardest. "He went looking for Austin Davis…" McGee said looking down at the body.

"Ah." Said Ducky. "The lieutenants daughter." he said in his British accent.

"Foster daughter." McGee corrected.

"Don't worry McGee. She will be fine." Ziva said trying to comfort him.

Tony had backed off McGee for now. To tell the truth, he kinda liked Austin too. To say the least, she was one of the few people in the world that can befriend anyone. Just the thought of someone hurting her made everyone's blood boil. All conversations stopped, only work was to be done. It was a tense, sullen time.


	4. Chapter 4

As the team examined the body of Gus Conell, Gibbs was out searching for Austin. He knew where she might be and he was on his way to the little piece of woods that he had seen her in the first time. Once he got to the wooded area, he parallel parked on the side of a curb, in between a silver Ford F-150 and a yellow Hummer. Gibbs got out of the car and started to head into the woods, worried at what he might find.

After a while of walking, it seemed a lot father than it had the first time. He saw the stream, but no Austin. He cursed under his breath as he looked around. He was slight startled by a small voice behind him. "Hey Gibbs."

Gibbs spun around, meeting the hurt eyes of a girl with a bloody lip, and a bruise at her jaw-line. "What happened? Are you alright?" Gibbs asked flustered. Austin looked away, seeming almost ashamed.

"I'm fine." She sighed

"Oh yeah, it sure looks like it." Gibbs responded sarcastically.

"Its no big deal! Besides, its not like your supposed to prevent this kind of stuff! Your job is to figure out who killed my mom. After this case is over, its not like you'll remember me." She muttered.

Gibbs shook his head. "Don't tell me what my job is, and also, your kind of hard to forget." Gibbs half smiled.

Austin looked up at him a little surprised at those words. She stifled a soft sigh as she walked past him. She took off her book bag that she had been carrying and set it down next to the stream and she sat down next to it. Gibbs came up and sat next to her, cross-legged. "You come out here a lot don't you?" He asks curiously.

Austin shrugged. "Yeah… I guess so."

Gibbs nodded. "Why is that? I mean, you have a nice home, a nice school, but instead of being there, you decide to get into trouble."

"Am I being interrogated?" She asks looking at him seriously.

Gibbs just chuckled a little. "No, your not. Just curious."

"It's not like you would understand."

"Try me." Gibbs retorted calmly.

Austin watched the water rush by, making ripples in the water as it moved swiftly and effortlessly around the rocks. Gibbs read her eyes, she didn't need to say anything.

"You think that if you cause a big uproar then maybe your parents will find you…" Gibbs said softly.

Austin just nodded slowly. "I know its stupid… you don't have to tell me." She muttered quietly.

"Its not stupid, I just don't think your getting anywhere."

She shrugged. "What else am I supposed to do?"

"Well, the first thing you should do is get that lip of yours checked out. Dr. Mallard will take care of that down at NCIS."

She nodded. "Alright. Fine."

XXXXXXXX

Once they were in the car, Austin dug something out of her pocket. It was a compass connected to a small gold chain. Gibbs looked over and looked surprised when he saw it. "Where did you get that?" He asked.

Austin looked over at him and shrugged. "I dunno. I think it was my dad's or sumthin. I've had it since I can remember."

Gibbs smiled a little. "I used to have one just like that."

"What happened to it?" she asks curiously

Gibbs got a blank look on his face. He seemed so distant all of the sudden.

"_Daddy. Please don't go." Mumbled a crying Kelly, hugging onto her daddy's leg as tightly as she could. He knelt down with a slight smile. "I'll be back real soon." He said as he held out his hand, which held a silver compass connected to a gold chain. "That's a promise." He said pointing to the compass. "That's a promise that I will come back." He stood up after giving her a big hug._

_He hugged his wife Shannon tightly. "Say it." She tells him sternly. He sighed heavily as he almost chanted "I will come back to you safe." He says simply. Shannon shook her head, "That's nice to know, but that's not what I meant." She says smiling. Gibbs chuckled "I love you." He says as he leans in to kiss her. "Now your getting it." She says with a slight laugh and leans in the rest of the way, kissing her husband right before he went to war._

"I lost it." Gibbs says as he finally returned to the conversation with Austin. She just nodded, deciding not to say anything more. She saw the intense look in his eyes, and knew to leave him alone for a while.

After a while they got back to NCIS and walked in the building. Once they got off the elevator, McGee was the first to notice Austin was alright for the most part and practically ran over to her, giving her a big warm McGee hug. Once he let go he got to eye level with her "What happened?! Who did this?!" He practically shouted. He seemed like a stressed out parent, which was really out of McGee's character and Gibbs couldn't help but smile a little.

"Calm down McGee." Austin said softly, seeing how worked up he was getting. "I'm fine."

"Fine?! Your bleeding! And you've got a bruise! That's not fine!" McGee hounded.

Austin didn't understand. She knew that McGee was sincerely worried. No one ever treated her like that before. No one really acted like they cared except for McGee and Gibbs, and she was about to realize that they weren't the only ones that really cared.

"McGee." Gibbs intervened, seeing Austin's lack of words.

McGee straightened up. "Yes boss?"

"Don't you have work to do?"

"Yes boss, on it boss." He says taking one more quick worried glance at Austin, then headed back to his desk.

Gibbs patted Austin on the back. "C'mon. Lets get you all fixed up." He says taking Austin down to the autopsy room. Gibbs had informed Ducky of this ahead of time, so there were no naked dead bodies on tables at the moment.

"Hey Doc." Gibbs said as they walked in the room.

"Hello Jethro, and hello my dear." Ducky said with a soft smile, looking over at Austin. "Lets get that lip fixed up shall we? Just take a seat up here." He says patting on one of the metal tables. Austin sat down on the table.

"So your last name is really Mallard? Like the duck?" Austin asked as she waited for Ducky to start work on her lip.

"Why yes. Around here they actually call me Ducky."

"No way! Your name is Ducky?"

Ducky laughed a little. "Well, I actually received that name in high school. I loathed that name, but eventually I grew to love it." Ducky informed.

"That's awesome! So am I allowed to call you Ducky?" She asked curiously.

"Why, yes. Of course you are my dear."

Austin smiled. "Sounds good Ducky." She says happily. Now she had already gotten Ducky to like her. She was truly just one of those people that were so likable that they didn't even have to try too hard at all to make a good friend. She had already made four in less than a day.

After Ducky was done getting her lip to stop bleeding. "Well, you should be fine." Ducky said, taking off his rubber gloves. "Can you tell me how it feels?" He asks curiously. Austin moved her tongue around her mouth a little. "Its great! I think I'm going to live Duck!" Austin said sarcastically with a smile. Ducky chuckled a little "That you will."

Austin slid off the table. Gibbs had been standing in the corner, listening and watching, also thinking about that compass. For some reason his mind couldn't let go of that one little compass.

"Austin, why don't you go upstairs and show McGee that the wound wasn't fatal." Gibbs joked.

Austin smiled a little and nodded. "No problem." She said, giving a little salute as she walked in the elevator, and the doors closed.

Gibbs looked at Ducky. "So, you got anything Doc?" Gibbs asked sternly.

Ducky just sighed. "Well, I couldn't get too far Gibbs. It was short notice when you called for me to put away the body. But I did find something strange." Ducky said walking over to one of the metal droors. He pulled out the droor, revealing the body of Gus Conell. Ducky pointed to a strange crescent scar behind the left ear.

Ducky looked at Gibbs. "Due to the lack of clotting, that indicates that this wound was inflicted post mortem. Due to the roughness, I can presume that it was done in a rush, and also with a hunting knife, a rather dull one at that." Ducky explained

"Anything else Doc?" Gibbs asked.

"Nothing of importance yet Jethro. Although there is a bruise on his stomach, but that is probably just from running into something, maybe even a fight perhaps, but it doesn't seem to pertain to the murder. My apologies. I'll have more once I get to examine the body thoroughly."

"Good work Doc." Gibbs said walking out.

When Gibbs got to the correct floor he saw McGee and Austin talking. Austin was standing next to him while he was on the computer. It looked like McGee was explaining something, and from the blank expression on Austin's face and the random nodding made Gibbs assume that she had absolutely no idea what this guy was talking about.

Tony and Ziva joined the little group now. They were all laughing, including McGee. The joke must not be about him… for the first time in a long while (or ever). Austin was truly making an impact on this team. It made Gibbs almost dread the ending to this case.

Gibbs didn't have time to stand around. He had to figure out this case, even if he didn't want to. He went down to see what Abby was doing. Abby had the music blaring. Gibbs walked over to the radio and turned it off, to reveal a perky Abby, singing along (screaming along), out of tune. She stopped as quick as she could and turned around and smiled at Gibbs. "Hey Gibbs! I found something if it interests you at all!"

Gibbs nodded. "I may be interested. What's the charge?"

"On the house today Gibbs." Abby responded happily.

Gibbs smiled a little "What do you got Abbs?" He asked setting down a bit cup of her favorite drink.

"Well Gibbs. Since Gus didn't do it… I've been forced to find new evidence within the evidence."

Gibbs gave her the 'get to the point look'.

Abby smiled "Alright, well. I examined the hunting knife that we got from Gus's murder and found that on the handle was speckles of blood."

"Gus's?" Gibbs asked.

"No. If it was Gus's then the blood would be going on an upward angle do to the splatter. It was someone else's."

"Our killer." Gibbs presumed.

"Precisely!" Abby said enthusiastically. "My thought is that because of the lack of finger prints, there was a hole in the palm of a rubber glove that the killer was probably wearing."

"Can you get a DNA match?"

"Sure thing Gibbs. I just need something to compare it to. Could you get DNA from Austin's foster father?"

"Do you have theory Abby?"

"Maybe… if you get me that DNA."


	5. Chapter 5

The next day, McGee picked up Austin and took her to school. McGee treated this girl like he was her father, and Austin took to McGee quickly. He was her best friend.

Once McGee dropped her off he headed down to NCIS. He walked inside and saw Tony sitting at his desk, and Ziva sitting at her own. They were bickering about something. McGee sat down at his desk and started working on the case. He was adamant to solve this case, and help Austin as much as he could. "Where's Gibbs?" He asked curiously, interrupting the argument.

"I'm not sure. I have not seen him all morning." Ziva answered.

"Hey McGoob! Your in charge of getting Chinese tonight!" Tony informed dramatically.

"Alright Tony." McGee said distracted as he stared at the computer screen.

Tony looked confused for a second then sighed. "McGee, stop working yourself do death."

"Will do Tony." McGee responded, too caught up in what he was doing.

Tony stood up and walked over to his desk and turned off the monitor.

McGee looked up at him frustrated. "Hey! What was that for?!"

"For ignoring me." Tony responded calmly.

McGee sighed heavily. "Sorry Tony… I just want to get this case done."

"Don't you think that we all do? We've already got Gibbs nipping at our knees. We don't need you to also." Ziva said, looking up from her desk at McGee

Tony turned to her. "Heels… nipping at our heels." Tony corrected.

"Knees, heels, they are both apart of the leg." Ziva said frustrated, not thinking her English mattered much at this point.

McGee just nodded. "Alright, alright. I'm sorry guys. Can we leave it at that?"

Tony nodded. "That'll do Probie… that'll do."

XXXXXXX

Meanwhile, Gibbs was over at Austin's house and he knocked on the door. Her foster father answered the door. He sighed heavily once he saw Gibbs standing at the door. "Haven't I answered enough questions yet?" He asks angrily.

"No" Gibbs replied. "Not quite." the man let him in and Gibbs was blunt. "Would you be willing to give a DNA sample?" The man seemed to hesitate but nodded. That gave Gibbs a bad feeling about this guy. "Alright. I need a hair follicle and saliva." He said taking out a small plastic bag and a Q-tip and handed it to the man. The man put the Q-tip in his mouth and rubbed around the side of his mouth, then putting it in the small bag.

Gibbs handed the man a separate bag for the hair. He plucked a hair from his balding head and put it in the bag. "Am I suspect now?" He asks angrily.

Gibbs just looked at the man sternly and answered "It's a possibility."

"You listen to me. I loved my wife. I would never hurt her! Did that kid say that it was me! She's a liar! Always has been! I never laid a hand on my wife!" He shouted defensively.

"Maybe so." Gibbs said calmly, but inside he was desperately trying not to nail this guy in the jaw. "But this is a complicated case, and you are no agent Mr. Davis, so please leave this to the agents." Gibbs said trying to be as pleasant as he could. "I should be on my way. Thank you for your time sir." Gibbs said, leaving.

XXXXXX

Gibbs rushed to get the DNA down to Abby. He wanted this guy locked up, but at the same time he almost prayed that it wasn't him. He didn't want to hurt Austin, and he knew that this would crush her. Abby looked up as Gibbs walked in and smiled pleasantly.

"Do you have the DNA Gibbs?" She asks expectantly.

Gibbs rested the two bags on the table. "Yes I do."

"Thanks Gibbs. It will take a few hours to get an accurate match."

Gibbs could tell that Abby was sure that this man was the killer. He trusted her judgment, and he knew that she was probably right. "Oh…and Gibbs…" Abby said as Gibbs was about to leave.

"Yeah Abbs?" Gibbs asked, turning around.

"When this case is over…can we help Austin?"

"Help Austin with what?"

"Finding her real parents… haven't you seen that look in her eye? It's almost painful to look in her eyes. She wants to have a real family so bad, but she doesn't want to show how much it hurts her. I mean-"

"I know Abby… trust me… I know." Gibbs interrupted, leaving the room.

Abby smiled a little, knowing that that was Gibbs's way of saying 'go for it.'

XXXXXXX

Later that day McGee had left to pick up Austin like she had requested. He brought her back to NCIS. Instead of staying upstairs with the rest of the team Austin went downstairs to talk to Abby. "Hey Abby!" Austin said, walking up next to her. "Got anything?"

"Hey Austin! I don't really have anything quite yet, but I am closing in on the culprit." Abby said, taking out a game board with the label of 'Clue'. "I'll find the killer way before you do." Austin challenged.

"Oh, I don't think so." Abby retorted with a smirk. "It was definitely Mr. Peacock with the ratchet in the diner." Abby informs.

"Are you willing to stake it all on that notion?"

"Not quite… yet." Abby said slowly.

"Well I am." Austin says smiling. "Mrs. Scarlet in the Basement, with the rope!" Austin exclaimed grabbing the envelope with the answer in it. Austin was right and she smiled triumphantly.

"How do you do that?! What's your secret?!" Abby asked forcefully.

Austin laughed and said, "Easy peasey. I'm just good at this game."

Abby glared playfully. "That's it… we are playing Risk next round."

"Your on…" Austin responded happily.

XXXXXXX

About two hours later, after McGee had taken Austin home Abby had gotten a match. The DNA matched that of Richard Davis. Abby called Gibbs down to show him. Once he was informed of the news he sighed heavily. "This isn't going to be easy to tell Austin." Gibbs said. Abby gave him a comforting hug. "I know Gibbs. She'll be alright though. She's a tough kid." She says as she lets go of him. At that moment Gibbs's phone started ringing.

"I know Abbs."

He looked down at his phone and realized that it was Austin calling. He had given her his number in case of emergencies.

"Hey Austin. Something wrong?"

"Gibbs… Richard is gone…"

Gibbs's eyes widened slightly. "Do you know where he went."

"No. He left as soon as I got home. He said that he had to leave me behind. What's going on?"

'_That bastard.'_ Gibbs thought to himself then responded to Austin. "Listen to me. I'm on my way. Stay were you are." He said as he hung up the phone.

The team arrived at the house in a matter of minutes. Austin was sitting on the floor, cross-legged. She had figured everything out, and she felt sick with sadness. She stood up when the team got there.

McGee, naturally was the first one in the house. Austin hugged him tightly. "I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have let him leave."

"Don't ever think this is your fault. Its purely his fault for committing the crime in the first place, and leaving you here alone." McGee said softly, wrapping his arms around her. He couldn't believe that someone could ever have the heart to leave this girl behind. Gibbs was next to walk in, followed by Tony, then Ziva.

They all looked at Austin with sad eyes. She had let go of McGee, sniffled a little and said, "I think he went down to Norfolk… address is 4095 Willow Street. His brother lives there." Her voice was rough and gravelly.

The team looked from one to the other, after they all met each others eyes, it was obvious they all came to the same conclusion. "Ziva. Take Austin back to the station." Gibbs said, his first choice was to get McGee to do it, but he knew that McGee wanted to take this guy down more than anyone besides Gibbs himself.

Ziva nodded respectfully as she looked over at Austin, suppressing a look of pity, knowing that it was not Austin's way for others to feel sorry for her, but Austin was so distraught she wouldn't have noticed someone playing a trumpet in her ear. Ziva reached out and touched her shoulder, indicating it was time to leave. Austin looked up at her and tried to force a half smile. She didn't do too well.

All Ziva could manage to say now was, "Things will get better."

Austin nodded a little and followed Ziva out.

McGee's fists were clenched. Tony noticed this and nudged McGee with his elbow, making him meet his eyes. Tony just nodded at McGee. McGee knew what this meant. Tony was trying to say, 'We are going to make sure this guy regrets everything he's done.'

McGee let a slight smile escape on his lips. Gibbs looked at them both then finally said "Why are we standing around? I don't know about you guys, but I'm ready to get this guy." Gibbs said, his anger slipping through his clenched teeth as they all walked towards the second car.

XXXXXXXXX

About an hour and a half later, after the painfully silent car ride, they were at the address Austin had given them. All three of them had gotten out there guns before they even got out of the car. As they walked up to the door, Gibbs first of course, they could see the anxiety in each others eyes, even Gibbs. Neither McGee nor Tony had ever seen Gibbs show that kind of emotion. This case struck everyone's nerve and they were ready to get this guy.

Gibbs turned and faced the door, raising his foot and sending it crashing into the door, making it fly open with a crash. Almost immediately Gibbs saw a dark figure shoot up from a chair that they were in. At that moment the figure started to sprint down a hallway on the other side of the dark room.

"Stop! NCIS!" Gibbs shouted as loud as he could. Once he realized the man wasn't going to stop he aimed and pulled the trigger, just barely missing, hitting the entryway to the hallway, the bullet splintering the wood harshly.

Gibbs ran inside, McGee and Tony going around back. Gibbs sent three more bullets flying towards the man, each one whizzing by the man's head.

The man made it to the backdoor, practically flinging himself outside, only to me greeted by Tony's fist, connecting with the man's jaw, making a loud, harsh cracking sound. The man was sent hurling to the ground with a hard face-plant. McGee didn't give the man time to roll over by himself. He grabbed him by the back of the shirt and turned him over, a sharp gasp escaping his throat as he saw the man's face. It wasn't Rick. Tony had never seen this man before.

Then he realized that it was his brother, like Austin had said. Gibbs came up, already knowing who the man was. He grabbed onto the collar of the man's shirt and started to yell, "Where is he?! Where is Richard Davis?!" He shouted. The man just smirked, blood trickling out of the corner of his mouth. Gibbs looked slightly confused, but then he realized what the joke was. He let go of the man, but before he even saw where Richard was, there was a gunshot.

Everyone spun in the direction of the gunshot, including Gibbs. They all were looking in the same place. They were all looking at McGee, who had his gun up, towards the roof of the house, his hands trembling as he slowly lowered the gun. They all looked up, seeing the body of Richard Davis rolling down the roof. The moment seemed to last forever as they watched the bloody body fall to the ground with a hard thud, and multiple cracks.

The body now sprawled out on the hard stone sidewalk. A hole in his head and a pistol laying only a few feet away from his outstretched hand. When Gibbs saw the pistol, he realized McGee had saved his life.

They turned there attention to Richard's brother, who was stunned and dazed at what had occurred. Then he shouted "No! You murdered him!" He screamed at McGee.

McGee had holstered his gun and was now looking down at the man, a dazed look in his eye. He couldn't think of anything to say. He didn't understand why someone was calling him a murderer, then he realized it was true. He regretted it, wishing he had aimed for a leg, but then Gibbs would probably be dead. He didn't know what to think. Everything happened so fast.

Tony came to his rescue as he said, "No, he's no murderer, but you are the accomplice of a murder _and _attempted murder. That makes you under arrest." Gibbs jerked the man to his feet and put handcuffs on him. The man was too stunned to fight back.

"Get Ducky down here to pick up the body, and get the police to pick this one up." Gibbs commanded as he escorted the man to the car to keep him there until the police got there.

Gibbs didn't show it, but he was grateful for McGee. McGee had saved his life, but more importantly he had stayed calm even under the circumstances.

He had never been more proud of McGee.


	6. Chapter 6

"Hey Gibbs!" exclaimed Abby with a sweet smile. "Can I have your hair?"

Gibbs just looked at her with an odd look. "Um…"

Abby chuckled. "Just one strand. Everyone's been messing around to see if they are related to Austin. McGee's done it, and so has Tony. Even Ziva and Ducky have done it Gibbs!" Abby said smiling.

Gibbs raised an eyebrow. "Is this really getting you any closer to finding her parents?"

"Well… so far we know four people who _aren't _related to her. C'mon Gibbs. Don't be so serious all the time." Abby almost pleaded.

Gibbs sighed heavily. "Abby, this isn't going to get her any closer to having a family." Gibbs argued.

Abby just gave him a, 'Don't you think I know that' look and said, "Don't you think I know that? I'm also going through her old orphanage's records to see who brought her in. This stuff is just to keep me occupied, you know how I get when I have nothing to do."

Gibbs just gave that little Gibbs half smile and said, "Alright, fine."

Abby smiled and reached for a strand of Gibbs's hair. He jerked back, gently pushing Abby's hand away from his head. Gibbs just shook his head and plucked out a hair himself and handed it to her.

Abby smiled brightly. "Thanks Gibbs!" She said to him as he walked out.

Once he got upstairs he rolled his eyes as he saw Tony and Austin having a chair spinning contest. They had gathered a rather large crowd. Almost all the people on that floor were watching. A few rooted for Tony and the rest rooted for Austin. Gibbs decided to watch for a little and interrupt a few minutes later.

McGee held a stopwatch in his right hand and finally he pressed the stop button once it hit sixty seconds.

"Stop your chairs!" McGee said loudly.

The both of them stopped. Austin swayed a bit, the room seeming to spin.

"Seventy-three!" She announced. The side that was rooting for her cheered.

Tony laughed. "Seventy-seven!" The side that rooted for Tony cheered. The other side expressed their disappointment in loud enthusiastic 'boo's', drowning out the cheering of Tony's other side.

Austin laughed and stood up, walking over to were Tony was and put her hand out for a high five.

Tony smiled and flew his hand towards hers. He missed, now feeling the full effect of dizziness.

Austin laughed and gently grabbed onto his wrist and lifted it up. She let go and Tony held his hand steady in the air where Austin had left it. Austin gave him the high five.

The crowd laughed as they slowly started to file back to there desks.

Austin had been doing great. The first week of finding out that the man she had lived with most of her life was a murdering hateful person was the worst.

After a month, the real Austin started to shine through again. It was a good thing to. Everyone was starting to miss her.

She had been staying with Gibbs for that amount of time. She was a great help with the boat.

McGee and Austin had become inseparable for the most part. Except for the random moments when Austin decided to talk to other NCIS agents.

Austin looked up at McGee and said, "I'm going to go see what Ducky and Palmer are doing." She says with a bright smile.

McGee just nodded.

Before Austin left she looked over at Tony and said, "Next time, your going down." She says playfully.

Tony smiled and said "You will never beat the champion chair spinner." Tony challenged.

"We'll see." Was the only response made by Austin.

Austin walked over to the elevator and saw Gibbs. She walked over to him. "Hey Gibbs!" Austin said happily.

Gibbs smiled. "Hey Austin." He said patting her head. "How are you feeling?" He asks curiously.

"A million times better…" she paused, then looked up at him. "Hey Gibbs?"

"Yeah?"

"If you guys don't find my parents… I wont have to go to another orphanage… will I?" She asks, a hint of fear in her voice that she was trying so desperately to hide.

Gibbs got eye level with her and said in the most sincere voice that she had ever heard before, "Not a chance."

Austin grinned. Gibbs had missed that Austin grin. Austin hugged him tightly. "Thanks Gibbs…" She said in an innocent voice.

Gibbs held her for a few seconds before she released. "I'll see you around Gibbs." She said with a smile as she walked into the elevator.

Austin walked over to Ducky and Palmer, who were now performing an autopsy now. They had learned to put a cloth over parts of the body that they didn't want Austin to see. They had learned that rule approximately a week ago due to Austin's random visits.

Austin walked over to the table. "Hey guys!" She said. Palmer smiled at her "Hey Austin. What's up?"

"Nothing much. How's the poking of people's organs going?"

"Pretty well." Palmer responded with a chuckle.

"Oh yes." Ducky chimed in. "Its going quite well indeed."

"What happened to this guy?" Austin asked curiously.

"Well, due to the thin bruising around the neck, I can presume that he was strangled with some type of rope or wire." Ducky proposed.

"Wow… brutal." Austin said simply.

"Quite." Ducky said, concentrating hard on what he was doing.

Austin yawned a little. She was really tired. She was no stranger to nightmares lately. It was almost to the point where she was terrified of going to sleep.

Palmer noticed how tired she was and asked, "Do you get any sleep anymore?"

She smiled a little, "Of course. Kinda…" she responded.

Ducky looked over at her. "You know my dear. Its not healthy for children your age to get less than ten hours of sleep."

Austin smiled "I'm fine Duck. Really."

"If you say so." Palmer said, a little worry in his voice.

They all shared some laughs and exchanged words for hours. Gibbs on the other hand was all over the place. He went to check on Abby a lot that day, to see if she got anything on Austin's parents. He was also occasionally down in autopsy to find out if Ducky had anything on the present case. Him and Austin would have a short conversation then he would leave. He also went to check on his team, to make sure they weren't throwing spitballs at each other, or something like that.

Gibbs finally got a chance to just sit down at his desk, coffee in hand. He took a sip of his coffee and sighed in relief, happy to be off his feet for the first time in about eight hours.

The moment didn't last too long as Abby called him down to the lab. In the midst of his slight frustration, he stood up and made his way to the elevator.

He hit the down button and took another swig of his coffee. He needed to stay awake. This was an important day. He knew that he might have to say goodbye to a new and great friend if they did in fact find her real parents. With her luck they probably lived in some trailer somewhere in New Jersey.

Gibbs couldn't let that happen.

He exited the elevator and made his way over to Abby. He tapped her on the shoulder and she jumped a little and spun around. "Oh, hey Gibbs." she said with that perky grin.

"What do you got Abbs?" Gibbs asked curiously.

"Well Gibbs, so far the computer hasn't matched you to Austin."

"Please tell me that's not the reason you called me down here…" Gibbs said sternly.

"That's not the reason I called you down here Mr. Grumpy." Abby retorted. "I called you down here because I found the person that dropped Austin off at the orphanage on Herman Road… She was only six years old." Abby added unnecessarily.

Gibbs sighed heavily. "And?"

"The people that dropped her off was this couple. The man was Greg Fletch and the woman was Terry Fletch."

"What's there address?"

Abby looked down at a slip of paper looking for the answer. She smiled and looked up at Gibbs and said, "608 Greenwood avenue."

"Good work Abbs."

"Don't mention it!" Abby called out before the elevator doors closed.

Gibbs had barely made it a step out of the elevator before Ziva stopped him. "The Director wants to see you in his office Gibbs." Ziva informed.

"Tell him I'm busy." Gibbs responded evenly.

"I don't know Gibbs. The Director really needs to see you. He seemed furious."

"What else is new?" Gibbs said as he made his way to the director's office.

Gibbs walked in and looked the Director in the eyes. "You wanted me Director?" Gibbs asked, wanting to get this done as quickly as possible.

"Yes special agent Gibbs. I wanted to talk to you about the kid that isn't gone. The case is over. Now I feel she's a distraction." He says bluntly

"That's not true Director. Her case may be over, but many of the agents have befriended her. She is no distraction. I can assure you that." Gibbs argued.

"Oh, I believe you Gibbs. So your team usually have chair-spinning contests in the middle of a work day?"

Gibbs let out a sharp sigh. "Sir, it was a harmless game. It was not getting in the way of anything. My team were waiting for results from autopsy."

"Really? Was that crowd of people also waiting for the results?"

"No sir." Gibbs responded reluctantly. "But I can assure you, Austin is no distraction to this team."

"She's a fourteen year old girl Gibbs. She has no business being here anymore."

"But sir. She has no family. Where is she supposed to go?"

The Director just looked at him with a raised eyebrow.

"No sir. I'm sorry, but I cant take her to an orphanage."

"Why is that?" He asks curiously.

"I promised her that I wouldn't."

"Oh really? That's an awful mistake Gi-" The Director stopped and looked at Gibbs oddly. "You…You've gotten attached to this girl. Haven't you?"

Gibbs answered truthfully by not answering at all.

"Gibbs." The Director sighed. "She's not some lost puppy. You can't keep her just because you've gotten attached to her."

"I don't plan on it sir."

"What do you plan on doing with her?"

"I plan on finding her real family sir."

"What if she has no family?"

"I don't know sir."

"She can't stay here any longer Gibbs. We need her gone for the sake of accuracy of the cases."

Gibbs didn't say anything except, "Goodbye Director." He said as he walked out. He walked downstairs and passed his teams desks. "McGee, Ziva. C'mon. Tony, get Austin and bring her down to 608 Greenwood Avenue in half an hour."

For a second they looked confused, but they followed him nevertheless.

McGee walked in the elevator beside Ziva and asked, "What's going on boss?"

"We are going to pay a few people a visit about a certain kid."

"You've found her parents?" McGee asked quickly, a sound of happiness, but also remorse, knowing he would have to say goodbye to a friend.

"It's a possibility." Gibbs responded.

XXXXXXXXXX

Gibbs knocked on the Fletcher's door. A man in his early sixties came to the door. He looked confused as he looked from Gibbs, to Ziva, then to McGee.

"May I help you?" He asks hesitantly with his deep gruff voice.

"Are you Greg Fletch?" McGee inquired.

"Yes sir."

"NCIS. Naval Criminal Investigative Service." Gibbs said as he flashed his badge and id. "May we come in?" He asked politely.

"Oh… sure." The man responded.

The man invited them to sit on the couch and offered them coffee. They all refused.

"We have a few questions for you sir." McGee said as the man sat down.

"Of course."

"Is your wife home?" Ziva asked softly.

"Regretfully no Miss. Terry died approximately 10 years ago."

Gibbs now decided to throw him a question. "Do you know an Austin Davis?"

The man's eyes widened as he looked at all three of them. "Is she alright?" the man asked flustered. "She is alright isn't she? She hasn't done anything has she?" The man was practically flipping out.

McGee joined in. "She's fine sir. Don't worry. How do you know her?"

The man sighed heavily with relief. He thought for long minute.

Right before Ziva asked the question again, the man started, "Fourteen years ago… no wait… fifteen years ago, in about a month, me and my wife were taking one of our walks. Terry heard a sound in a little batch of woods. I thought it was just an animal, but when Terry went to investigate and came out with a little baby girl wrapped in a dirty old green blanket I nearly got a heart attack."

The man chuckled "She was the cutest thing I've ever seen. I know that sounds cheesy but its true. Those beautiful blue eyes…" The man paused as he remembered. It was obvious he had loved that girl.

"There were blood stains on the blanket and we thought she was hurt." He continued.

"We took her home. We had turned on the news and saw that their had been a car accident down that road. The driver had been shot and a little girl, a baby and the mother had been in the back of the car. The girl and the mother didn't make it. They couldn't find the baby…" He paused once again, trying to figure out how to phrase the rest of the story.

"Since we knew the mother was dead, we assumed the father was out of the picture since he wasn't mentioned too much in the news."

"So you kept her?" Gibbs asked.

"Yes sir. We kept her. We found out her name was Austin. You see, Terry was unable to have a baby, and she wanted one so badly. Austin was an answer to our prayers. We loved that girl like she was our own."

"But you gave her up?" McGee interrupted. Gibbs looked McGee with a raised an eyebrow, then back at the man.

The man looked ashamed. "Its not what you think." He sighed. "Terry died when she was four… throat cancer. Austin didn't understand why her best friend didn't come home from the hospital. It broke my heart. Two years later I decided that I couldn't care for her myself. I didn't have the money. She wasn't mine anyway. I wanted her to have a great life. I had no choice but to give her up…"

McGee looked down at the ground twiddling his thumbs. At that moment there was a knock on the door, and the sound of arguing behind it. Everyone recognized the childish female voice along with the childish male voice behind the door except for Greg.

Greg tried to get up, but Gibbs was first. "I'll get it." He said insistently. The man looked confused, then decided that it must be an agent of his.

Greg then asked before Gibbs opened the door, "Austin is alright…isn't she?"

Gibbs didn't answer. He just had a smile on his face as he opened the door, revealing the pretty red headed girl that Greg remembered so well, except she looked so much more mature than the six year old. Greg knew it was Austin when he saw those piercing blue eyes. Greg shot up as he looked at Austin. She hadn't noticed him yet. "Hey Gibbs! Can you tell Austin that cats DON'T always land on their feet!" Austin cut in now. "No Gibbs! Tell her that cats DO! They do!" "No they don't!" Argued Tony. "Yeah huh!" Austin retorted. "How would you know anyway?! Did you throw a cat?" Austin continued as she raised an eyebrow, similar to the Gibbs look as Tony answered, "Maybe I did!" They weren't stopping. They were determined that one of them had to be right.

"Guys…" Gibbs tried to interrupt. After they didn't stop Gibbs raised his voice. "Hey! Children!"

They both turned to Gibbs and said simultaneously "Sorry Gibbs."

Gibbs sighed sharply. "If you two are done?"

"Yes sir!" Austin said giving a playful salute.

Gibbs smiled a little.

"Boss! If I did that it would be an automatic slap to the back of the head!"

Gibbs slapped Tony in the back of the head.

"Understandable…" Tony said simply

Gibbs looked down at Austin then looked over at Greg. "Greg, would you like to say 'hello'?"

Austin then looked up and her eyes widened as she saw Greg. "Greg? Greg Fletch? My Greg Fletch?"

Greg looked at her and smiled. "You remember me?"

Austin grinned "You got old."

Greg chuckled, "I'm not the only one."

She didn't say anything. Instead she ran over and hugged him.

"I'm so sorry… I've regretted giving you up every day." Greg said softly.

Austin looked up at him. She had never been angry with him. She didn't know why. She sometimes tried to be mad at him.

She figured she just wanted to blame someone else for what happened to her so badly.

Maybe she wasn't mad because she understood somehow, and besides, this man was the only one that was ever cared about her besides Terry.

"I missed you Greg."

Greg chuckled as tears started to flow down his face.

Gibbs, McGee, Tony, and Ziva were all grinning. Tony looked over at McGee and saw that he was tearing up. "It's alright McGirl. It's a happy ending."

McGee looked over at Tony. "Shut up. I'm not crying." McGee said defensively, his voice choked up.

Gibbs chuckled as his phone rang. He answered it with a light-hearted "Gibbs."

"Gibbs… you've got to come to the lab now." Said a distraught Abby.

"What's the matter Abby? You got something?"

"Yeah Gibbs. Just hurry."

XXXXXXX

Once they were all back at the base about an hour later, Austin was off doing her thing while Gibbs was rushing down to the lab.

Abby turned to Gibbs and said in a shaky voice, "The test results came…the one where we were messing around to see if anyone was related to Austin."

"Yeah? So?" Gibbs asked, slightly annoyed that he had gotten all worked up because of this stupid test result.

"Well Gibbs. The test showed that…"

"Spit it out Abbs!" Gibbs said frustrated.

"Austin…is your daughter."


	7. Chapter 7

Gibbs just glared at Abby. He had never glared at Abby before, and that made her uncomfortable, even though the situation wasn't all that comfortable to begin with.

"Do you think that's funny Abby?"

"Gibbs. Its not a joke. Honest."

Gibbs just stared blankly. "Damn it Abby! I don't feel like dealing with this!"

"Gibbs! I swear to you! DNA does not lie."

"Let me see the results!"

Abby handed him the results and Gibbs held them at arms length, squinting to see the tiny print.

Right there, in black and white, were words that Gibbs didn't think that he would see. Abby was telling the truth.

Gibbs fell into a chair, tired and distraught. He didn't believe it. He knew it had to be fake. He knew…it had to be… right? Well, until he remembered the compass.

He shot up from the chair and started to run to the elevator. He needed to see that compass. There was one sure way to tell if it truly was the one that he had given Kelly the day he left.

He practically sprinted off the elevator. He stopped at McGee's desk, knowing he would know where she was. "Where is Austin?!" Gibbs shouted, looking McGee in the eyes.

McGee was surprised and couldn't get the words out fast enough. "She's…um"

"McGee!"

"She's down with Ducky boss!" McGee responded, holding his breath.

When Gibbs hurried off McGee let out the air he had been holding in. He was curious now as to what was going on, but he had no business in it until Gibbs specifically told him that he was to get involved.

Gibbs made it down to autopsy, not seeing Austin. He cursed under his breath. "Where is Austin?"

Ducky saw how flustered Gibbs seemed to be. "She just left. She said she was going to talk to Abby.

Gibbs hurried off. He needed to find that girl that never seemed to stop moving. Now he was seriously considering putting a tracer on the kid considering how many times he had a hard time finding her. At any other time he would have laughed at the thought, but right now, this was no laughing matter.

Gibbs stormed in the lab and saw Abby and Austin playing a nice round of checkers. There seemed to be an apprehensive look to Abby, and Austin noticed it, but she didn't really pay too much attention to it.

Austin heard Gibbs walk in and looked up smiling. The smile faded when she saw that he was in one of his moods. This was a seriously bad mood from the looks of it. Everyone seemed to be in a weird mood lately.

Gibbs wasted no time at all as he commanded, "Let me see your compass."

"What for?" asked Austin confused.

"I'll tell you after you let me see the compass."

Austin dug in her pocket and hesitantly handed it over to Gibbs. "What's going on? Did I do something wrong?"

Gibbs said nothing as he started to pry the compass open.

"Hey! Knock it off! You're going to break it!" Austin said quickly.

At that moment the compass top popped up, revealing a secret compartment hidden below. Inside was an old, discolored, torn piece of paper. He took it out and unfolded it carefully.

It was Shannon's handwriting. He knew it all too well.

The note read:

_Dear Jethro,_

_A week after you left I realized I was pregnant. It's a girl! Kelly is so excited to have a baby sister. I suppose I should have tried to call you, and I tried, but the call just didn't go through, you know how hard it is to get through to a specific marine on the base. Anyway, her birthday was on May 17th__ 1995. Her name is Austin. I wish you could have been here for that great day, but it was obvious that that was not a possibility._

_Anyway, me and Kelly miss you, and Austin cant wait to meet her daddy. Hurry home, and please be safe. We all love you. Simper fi._

_Love: Shannon, Kelly, and Austin_

_P.S. She has your eyes Jethro._

Gibbs looked at Austin, then back at the compass. Engraved on the bottom of the compartment were the names, _Kelly_, _Shannon_, and _Jethro_.

Gibbs looked at Austin once again. "Your mom wrote this letter…" He said handing her the letter. She read it over, grinning. After a few moments she shouted, "I have a sister! And a mom! And a dad…with a cowboy name…cool! Can we find where they are?!"

Gibbs looked like he had just been stabbed through the heart.

Abby was close to tears.

Austin looked at the both of them confused. She was suddenly afraid. "Wh-What's the matter? Why are you guys…" Austin couldn't finish the sentence. She didn't know how. She was so confused, she just didn't understand why everyone was so upset. She thought she had done something wrong.

"Austin…" Gibbs finally said. "My full name…is Leroy… Jethro… Gibbs."

Austin just looked at him. "I don't understand…"

"I always went by my middle name." Gibbs tried to explain.

Austin just smiled a quivering, timid smile. "You're kidding."

Gibbs shook his head.

"But… Gibbs… You don't have a kid…or a wife. The name is just a coincidence."

"I used to have a little girl named Kelly, and a wife named Shannon. I went away on a mission. I was in the marines. Do you understand?"

Austin had tears in her eyes. "How…how could you not have known. You can't be my dad!" Austin asked, which only crushed Gibbs even more. He knew that Austin didn't mean to hurt him. She didn't have the heart to hurt anyone intentionally. She was definitely Shannon's child.

"I would have been there if I had known. I just didn't get the memo."

"This isn't a joke!" Austin responded rashly.

"I know that. Calm down please. Shannon didn't get the chance to send me that letter… how could I have known?"

Austin looked away from him. Abby had left the room, giving them privacy.

"Austin…I really _am_ your dad."

Austin didn't know how to react. "Where's mom? Where's Kelly?"

Gibbs looked away. "They…died…in a car accident fourteen years ago."

A tear ran down her face. She was trying so hard not to cry. She looked at the ground as the tears multiplied. "That isn't fair… You can't be my dad… that's not possible."

"Austin…" Gibbs said softly. He touched her chin and raised her head up slightly, so they were looking each other in the eye. "I am the father that didn't know. I am the father that was too caught up in his own life to figure it out. I may not be the best father… but I am _your_ dad."

Austin looked at him, stunned. She knew he was telling the truth. He had to be. Who would lie about that? She had so many questions about her mother and her new found sister, but she knew that she had hurt Gibbs with a few previous comments. She didn't mean it. She didn't know. To make up for it, she hugged him tightly.

She hugged the father that she had never met before, and for the first time in a really long time, she was happy. She was allowed to be a kid for the first time.

Gibbs responded in the best way he knew how. He hugged her back.

The rest of the team had already heard the news. Abby, of course couldn't keep it a secret for very long. They were all lined up at the door, listening intently. Each and every one of them had a tear in their eye, even Ziva, and the macho Tony.

Every one of them were happy because they didn't have to say goodbye to a good friend.

Austin released Gibbs and looked up at him.

Gibbs smiled down at her and said, "C'mon. We've got a case to solve." He ruffled her hair and they both headed to the door.

As Gibbs opened the door, it smacked Tony in the head. Tony fell back, knocking into Ziva, who knocked into McGee, who knocked into Abby, who knocked into Palmer. It was like dominoes. They were all laying on the ground, groaning. All except for Ducky. Ducky was smart enough to stand to the side, knowing something like that would happen.

Austin smiled a little. It wasn't until that moment when everyone realized, she had the Gibbs smile! It was only a matter of time before she had the Gibbs stare, female style.

That was the moment when everything just felt right, almost complete. The moment when the puzzle was almost done. Everyone was where they should be, and everyone was accounted for.

Everyone stood up, dusting each other off. Insults flew as Tony jumped at the chance to dust Ziva off.

Everyone except for Ducky, Palmer and Abby went back upstairs, back to work. Everyone had an awkward grin on their faces throughout the rest of the day. Not a single person was wearing a frown. Gibbs wouldn't allow them to say why they were so happy, but everyone seemed to be communicating with their eyes.

When Ziva, McGee, or Tony looked at each other, their expressions would all say the same thing. Whether it was 'wow… I love this job.' Or maybe 'wow… what a day.' Maybe even 'wow… nothing could ruin this.'

When anyone of them looked at Gibbs, he would just smile that famous smile, that just said 'wow…'.

XXXXXXX

A few hours later, Austin was asleep at Gibbs's desk. Her head resting on her folded arms on the desk.

She had been so tired. McGee noticed that when she was asleep was the only time that she really looked calm, easy-going. In reality, she was headstrong and definitely stubborn and the most energetic person anyone would ever hope to meet. Just like her dad, minus the energetic part. That made him laugh a bit.

Austin started to stir. She raised her head and rubbed her eyes. She saw McGee and smiled. "Hey McGee. How's work going?"

"Its going." McGee responded with a simple answer.

Austin just laughed a little as Gibbs walked up. She turned a little and smiled at him. "Hey Gibbs! Can I go over to Greg's place? Just for a little while."

Gibbs raised an eyebrow. He understood why she wasn't calling him dad, that didn't bother him too much quite yet. "Are you sure you cant go later? You've got school tomorrow, and its getting pretty late."

"Don't worry bout it. Greg won't mind. Besides, it's not like I'm going to be gone for hours."

Gibbs sighed a little. "Alright, go on. Don't stay out too long. Which means, be home by ten."

Austin paused. She had heard the caring sound in Gibbs's voice. The word 'home'. No one would ever understand how much that word meant to her. Coming from the father she had never known about until now.

Austin finally spoke. "No problem Gibbs."

'Home'… A simple word, that holds so much meaning to the tiniest of people.

A/N Out of curiosity, I would like to know what some of the readers favorite parts of this story is so far. I'm hoping that if I get peoples opinions it will lead to better stories in the future. Thanks!!


	8. Chapter 8

**Austin got up early Monday morning. It had been two weeks since Gibbs had a daughter. Everything seemed to be going fine, but Gibbs just had one growing problem. Austin had yet to call him dad. He thought that if he gave her a week then she would accept the idea, but that was not the case.**

**He had given her two weeks to adjust, but now he was extending that idea to a month. He wasn't sure if he should bring up his concern, but he didn't want to rush Austin in any way. So, he kept it to himself, like he did with a lot of his problems.**

**Austin, on the other side of things couldn't wait to go to school today. She was finally starting to be a popular kid. She was starting to fit in. A couple of the girls had told her on Friday that they were going to give her tips on who to hang out with and also how to keep the popular status.**

**She practically flew down the stairs. Gibbs noticed how excited she was and commented. "Anything exciting planned for the day?"**

**Austin smiled. "Hoping so." She says simply.**

**Gibbs smiled a little and handed her a cup of coffee. "Try it."**

**Austin took a quick sip of the lightly sugared coffee. It was warm, but not hot. To her it was great. "Thanks a lot." Austin says quickly, Eager to get out of the house.**

**Gibbs smiled. "Alright. Are you ready?"**

**Austin nodded vigorously. "Yeah."**

"**Lets get a move on then." Gibbs said, finishing up his own coffee.**

**Austin grabbed her book bag, taking another quick sip of her coffee as she walked out the door.**

**Gibbs drove her on to school. He didn't like the idea of her taking the bus. He preferred that he actually knew the route and if the person driving wasn't a complete idiot. So he took matters into his own hands by driving his daughter to school himself.**

**Gibbs parked in the school parking lot and let her out. "See you at three o'clock. Have fun."**

**Austin opened the car door and turned towards Gibbs. "I intend to." She says playfully. "You too Gibbs. Don't work too hard. See you later." She says as she closed the car door.**

**As Austin got out of the car she was greeted by two girls, wearing skirts that were about two inches too short and tank tops that definitely showed some skin. Austin seemed just a little out of place with her loose jeans and T-shirt with a slight hole in the sleeve from walking around in her secret spot back in the woods. These girls looked like they had never taken a step on natural mushy ground to Gibbs. He trusted Austin, but he was still a little worried as he drove off.**

**The girls strutted up to her, laughing about some joke they heard before walking up to her. **

"**Hey Austin!" called out one of the girls, despite how close they were.**

"**Hey Stephanie." Austin replied a bit calmer than the two.**

**They didn't get to talk too long because the bell rang for first period, but Rory, the other girl did give Austin an update on her fingernail status, which were now hot pink, opposed to Friday's baby blue.**

**In first period, science class, Austin doodled most of the time. Only looking up to say the words "I don't know." Whenever the teacher called her name. The teacher would just sigh and call on someone else. This was a daily thing, but the teacher never seemed to want to stop trying to get her involved.**

**The day moved slowly. Austin wanted the bell to ring for lunch so badly. She had the same lunch as Stephanie and Rory, and they had promised to let her sit at the popular table.**

**The bell finally rang. Austin was finally going to be important in the teenage world.**

**She made her way down to the lunchroom, brown paper bag that consisted of a turkey sandwich and juice box in tow. She met up with Rory and Stephanie in the lunch line.**

**Stephanie just laughed and said, "First of all, you should start buying lunch. You don't look too appealing carrying a paper bag with you."**

**Austin just shrugged. "Its lunch. I don't see why it matters." **

**Rory sighed. "Don't question it. Its just the way it works. We didn't make the rules."**

**Austin just thought to herself. **_**"You kind of just did…" **_**Instead of saying that she said, "Alright. That's fine."**

**Stephanie then said, "Oh, and Austin."**

**Austin raised an eyebrow, gritting her teeth at what was about to come out of Stephanie's mouth. She had accepted the lunch idea, but she was sure that she didn't really want to be criticized about anything else.**

"**Your shirt has a hole in it. Frankly, you look like a redneck that just got out of the woods."**

**Rory cracked up, followed by Stephanie, but Austin was seething, even though she didn't show it. She wanted to be popular, and if that meant dealing with these pointless cracks about her clothing then so be it.**

**She forced a smile and said "Oh. Alright then. Thanks for telling me."**

**After a few minutes all three of them were sitting at the popular table, which consisted of a pregnant girl, four soon to be pregnant girls, a boy who got the girl pregnant, and five guys that were on the football team snorting coke in their laps so the teacher observing the lunchroom wouldn't see. The sports players that were not doing the drugs were selling them. Then there was Austin. The sweetest girl at the table who was now staring down. Not feeling like looking up, knowing she would see white powder in front of her and someone saying 'try it.'**

**Instead Rory tapped her on the shoulder. "Austin. There is one more thing you should know."**

"**What is it?" Austin mumbled, wanting to get this little piece of excellent advice out of the way.**

**Rory pointed over at the table that consisted of only one boy. "That, is the nobody table."**

**Austin looked severely confused. "How can it be the nobody table? Someone is sitting there." Austin informed.**

**Rory just thought that was the most hilarious thing she had ever heard. "No, no." Stephanie jumped in for Rory who was about to wet her pants, or lack there of, from laughter. "He doesn't talk to anybody and nobody talks to him. No one likes him. Therefore, he's nothing. Hence, the nobody table."**

**Austin's fists were clenched so tightly her knuckles were white. Without a single word she stood up, picking up her untouched brown bag of lunch and headed over to the 'nobody table'.**

**Rory and Stephanie looked confused for a second, then they looked surprised. They couldn't believe that Austin just left like that. They were sure that she was coming back. She had to be. No one walks out on the popular people.**

**Austin set down her lunch and sat down next to the boy. He wore black glasses and was medium build. He had brown hair that fell just to the middle of his neck and he had green eyes.**

**The boy took on a look of pure shock as he looked over at the girl who sat next to him.**

**Austin noticed the look and suddenly asked, "I'm sorry, is it alright if I sit here?" She asks hesitantly.**

**The boy nodded slowly and Austin smiled.**

"**I'm Austin. What's your name?" Austin asks curiously**

"**Um… Paul."**

"**Hey Paul. Don't you have first period with me?"**

**Paul blushed a little and nodded. "Yeah." He knew all too well that Austin was in his first period. He thought that she was cute, and he **_**knew**_** she was kind, unlike the other girls in the school. He knew because of all the little things that she did for people. Whether it was letting others borrow a pencil or picking up peoples books when they dropped them. She had done that for him once, and when she had handed him the books she actually smiled at him.**

**Most of all, she never made fun of him. She was probably the only one in the school that didn't seem to like messing with him.**

**Paul was suddenly blunt. "Aren't you going to go back to the other table? You aren't exactly helping your status by sitting here." he didn't mean for it to come out so demanding, he just didn't know why she was over here, and that worried him.**

**Austin just shook her head. "No… I'm not one of them. It doesn't feel right over there. I'm sorry, do you want me to move. Ill find another spot if you want me too."**

"**No!" He said a little too quickly "Um… its fine… you can stay here if you want."**

**Austin smiled. They started to make conversation. Paul told random funny stories that had happened to him in his life, making Austin laugh a few times. Paul was surprised at how little Austin talked. Usually people had tons of hilarious stuff to say about their lives. But not Austin. She was quiet, occasionally giving her input on something. Austin was equally surprised at how much Paul could talk. She had never heard him speak until that day.**

**May 5th**** was the day that Paul and Austin became the best of friends.**

**Gibbs picked up Austin from school. He had been a little worried at first because she wasn't standing with the girls she had been with this morning. In a way, he was happy about that. They looked a little… adventurous.**

**But when Austin got in the car, grinning ear to ear, he knew that everything was fine.**

"**Hey Gibbs." Austin said simply. "How was your day so far at work?"**

"**Just fine. How about you? Did the popular thing work out for you?"**

"**No… not really. Not my thing I guess."**

"**Really?" Gibbs asked surprised as he started to drive.**

"**Yeah. But I did make a friend."**

"**Oh. That's why your so happy?"**

"**Yup. He's really-"**

"**He? As in male?" Gibbs interrupted.**

"**Yes Gibbs. He as in male."**

"**Is **_**he**_** into girls?"**

**Austin laughed. "Gibbs, don't be like that."**

**Gibbs just smiled a little. "Well, you two are just friends right?"**

"**Yeah. So don't worry about it."**

**Gibbs just nodded. "Alright. If you say so."**

**Once they got down to NCIS, Austin decided to go talk to McGee, Tony and Ziva. No one treated her any different. She may have been Gibbs's daughter, but that didn't matter to anyone. They all laughed when Austin told the story of the popular table. They especially loved how many times Austin used the word pregnant in a single sentence.**

**It was all a joke right now, but everyone except Austin was thinking the same thing. **

**They were all proud of her for walking away.**

**A/N This is the last chapter folks!! I am making a sequel to this story, and trust me. There are going to be some twists =D. Please read the sequel called,**

**A New World, A Growing Heart**


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